As solopreneurs, we often need to create impactful visuals on a tight budget and limited time. The secret? Learn to “steal” from the best.

Now, I’m not advocating for copyright infringement. I’m talking about learning from those who’ve mastered the craft.

It’s a time-honored approach, promoted by artists like Austin Kleon in his books and newsletter and Alex Llull in his Steal Club.

Let’s create some pixel-sized visual impact

I recently committed this creative theft when redesigning my LinkedIn banner image. (Even if LinkedIn isn’t your favorite social media platform, stay with me. The design lessons translate.)

My goal was to update my profile banner to feature my Solo Business Canvas. With that in mind, I set off to steal whatever inspiration I could.

Here's how to steal effectively.

Step 1: Go inspiration hunting.

First, I created an empty Notion document and took screenshots of banners from respected solopreneurs with similar audiences. I pulled together 12–15 examples on one page to quickly scroll, compare, and see what might work for me.

Let’s analyze a few banners. In this case, they all share the same screen real estate: 1584 x 396 pixels. However, the design lessons can apply to your personal brand visuals in many places.

​Jay Clouse is the founder of Creator Science, a media company supporting creators. There’s a retro playfulness in his brand, seen here with distorted type resembling a paused VCR scene. As a recognized expert, Jay can use minimal messaging for his header.

​Kelley Carlstrom’s header highlights five pillars of her training program for pharmacists on cancer treatment and prevention. It becomes a mini brochure for her signature program.

​Jay Acunzo highlights his speaking and storytelling in his header, which features a photo of him in action on stage facing a roomful of conference attendees listening to his story. It’s a fine example of: Show, don’t tell.

Consider: What job does your banner visual need to do?

Step 2: Analyze what makes the best visuals work.

When brainstorming your banner, focus on the visuals you admire. What stands out? Is it the color scheme, typography, imagery, or overall composition? Try to understand why these elements are effective.

​Michelle Massman’s consulting practice focuses on growth-focused entrepreneurs, ranging from startups to established companies. Her banner uses color bands and typography to emphasize her program to help them move from stuck to unstoppable.

​Austin Church creates a pattern of graphic shapes in solid colors from left to right. It visually leads to his promise to prospective clients: “Have a record year while working less.” This phrase is underscored by the URL of his company, Freelance Cake.

​Gwyn Wansbrough helps trainers and course creators lead top-notch online sessions, and she infuses warmth throughout her banner with a yellow gradient. She promotes her facilitation newsletter with a phone mockup, a prompt to subscribe, and her company's URL. A row of logos showcases her partnerships.

Consider: What colors, shapes, and typography appeal to you?

Step 3: Combine multiple influences.

Don't limit yourself to one source of inspiration. Original designs come from combining influences. Mix elements from different visuals to create something unique.

​Becky Davidson’s company helps creators build vibrant online communities. Her brand palette is carried from the pale violet background to the purple heart emoji in her copy. The italic text in her headline emphasizes her focus on community building, and a phone mockup illustrates her newsletter.

​Chenell Basilio created Growth in Reverse to dive deep into how top creators grew their newsletters to 50,000+ subscribers. The timeline graphic in her LinkedIn header illustrates the valuable insights she shares to help her readers and community members grow their audiences.

​Katelyn Bourgoin’s banner image is packed with visual details, but it doesn’t seem cramped. She promotes her Why We Buy newsletter on buyer psychology with a persuasive headline, impressive stats, a phone mockup, and emojis. The lineup of media logos adds even more credibility.

Consider: What elements can you combine for powerful messaging?

Step 4: Adapt, don't copy.

Infuse your visual with your personality and brand essence. It’s what will set you apart. The key is to draw inspiration, not to plagiarize.

For my banner, I used elements from layouts I admired and incorporated my brand colors and messaging.

I wanted to promote my new Solo Business Canvas with a call to action. I turned a few LinkedIn comments into testimonials and played with the negative space amid the text. I added a squiggle in contrasting orange to point people to the download link at the bottom of my bio.

Step 5: Test and iterate.

Test your banner on both desktop and mobile devices. I abandoned an earlier draft after discovering that my profile photo partially hid the headline when viewed on my phone.

Is my banner design perfect? Hardly. It was a quick mockup. Fortunately, unlike printed marketing, it can be changed easily.

After you test, analyze the results against your original goal. Repeat.

Your challenge this week: Commit some creative theft. Gather 12–15 screenshots of profile images and banners on your preferred social media platform. Choose images that target a similar audience. Then, experiment and begin to create your own style.

Now you know how to jumpstart your creativity to make small visuals that can have a big impact on your solo business.

That’s stealing in the best sense of the word!

❤️ My favorite visual delights

Here are this week’s gems from around the Web for all types of visual thinkers:

📚 How Design Makes the World - Reading List​
When Scott Berkun wrote the design primer, How Design Makes the World, he studied more than 100 books, films, and podcasts. Lucky for us, he’s published the list, along with his notes and suggestions for those new to design as well as pros. This is a rabbit hole worth browsing.

✍️ Why writing by hand is better for memory and learning​
We’ve heard anecdotes for years about the value of putting pencil or pen to paper. Better retention of the material. Deeper engagement and reflection on ideas. Now, as more people prefer digital devices, new research is out on the impact of hand-written notes and drawings on brain activity. The best part is that this Scientific American article by Charlotte Hu translates the research findings into an interesting 6-minute read in non-scientific language.

✅ Checklist Design​
If you’re ready to tackle a design project that involves user interaction — from a product to a website and many things in between — you know that it can get very complex, very quickly. Designer George Hatzis developed this collection of checklists to combat mental overload and the risk of forgetting an important step. “Designers, developers, and makers can all benefit from these checklists,” he says. SOLO readers will particularly appreciate the branding checklist.

Did you miss these?

Catch up on some recent popular issues of SOLO you may have missed.

✅ Meet the Solo Business Canvas​

✅ Could your brand’s visuals stand on the Olympic podium?​

✅ How to drought-proof your visual creativity​

✅ Draw, tell, and sell with this single-line framework​

✅ Credibility: Build it or borrow it?​​​​​​​​

Want to check out other past issues? Visit the SOLO Newsletter archive.

Thanks again for being a SOLO reader and coming along on this journey of visual exploration.
​
Know someone who wants to grow their solo business with a visual framework? Have them visit the Solo Business Canvas landing page at www.solobusinessschool.com/canvas.
​
And if you received this issue from a friend, I invite you to subscribe.​

See you next week,